Chapter Twelve

"I've taken the liberty of ordering a bottle of a merlot I grew accustomed to in France," Dao said as he slid into his seat across from Valerie and handed her a menu. "One of the reasons why I wanted to come here tonight."

"Alice and I talked about coming here a few times," she said as her eyes took in the the selections. "We never got around to actually doing it with everything that's been going on."

Dao nodded as he looked over his menu. "And why isn't she joining us tonight? I'm sure she could have tore herself from … whatever it is she's doing."

"She's … doing something with Ben tonight." Val's eyes locked with Dao's for a split second before they retreated back to the menu in her hands. "I didn't want to bother her."

Dao continued to watch her in silence until he smiled. "This reminds me of when I was tailing Alice that one night. Or so I thought."

Val looked up at him. Her eyes reflected the flickering of the candles on the nearby wall. "Oh, you mean the night we found your little bug? It was so cute."

Before he could respond, Dao's phone vibrated in his pocket. "Apologies," he said as he pulled it out and peered at the display screen.

For three seconds he contemplated his next move, using the motion of replacing the phone back into his jacket to disguise his process. He leaned forward in his chair over at Valerie.

"You know, I have thought about that night for quite a while now."

Val did not lift her eyes from the menu in her hands. "Really?"

"Of course. It taught me a lot about you and Alice. That it's hard to figure out when you're telling the truth … or not."

He placed his hand on top of the menu. "Just like right … now."

Valerie looked up at Dao for a long moment. She sighed and released the menu. Instead of placing her hands in her lap, she used them to cover Dao's.

"Okay, Dao. You win."

#

Margot stood by the sliding glass door leading out to an enclosed veranda, a steaming cup of coffee resting on a saucer in her hand. She heard a noise in the bed behind her but did not move as she waited with anticipation.

The arms she waited for wrapped around her waist. Danny slid her hair back behind her neck with his chin and kissed her passionately behind her left ear.

The motion was more than Margot could bear. She stretched out until the coffee cup and saucer was safely on a side table before she turned around and kissed Danny with much fervor. The silk robe she wore fell to the floor as he scooped her up in his arms and brought her back to the bed.

#

"I do want to apologize for what happened after we arrived in New York," said Alice. "I promised Mr. Hunt that I would make sure you are properly compensated by my firm for any inconvenience you might have faced."

The pilot waved off the offer, warily eyeing Tilda who stood beside the jet smiling behind Alice. "No need, Miss Vaughan. Mr. Hunt said that he'll make sure I'm taken care of. I've placed a call with your office when we were twenty minutes out and Miss Anderson is sending cars for you and your group."

Sophie and the Hammer descended from the plane as Alice smiled. "Well, thank you for all your help. I think I see our rides now."

Two dark SUVs pulled into the hangar and came to a stop several feet from the jet. The passenger door to the closest vehicle opened and Valerie exited. "How was your international vacay?"

Alice took a step forward and hugged her best friend. "Very informative," she answered. "Any problems on your end?"

Val released Alice and took a step back. "You could probably say that," she said. Her voice took an apologetic turn. "Dao knows about your little trip. He's not too happy. "

Sophie gasped. "We've been keeping a lot from Dao for days now. Are we in trouble?"

"It doesn't matter," Alice answered reassuringly. "We have a little get out of jail free card that I will play at the appropriate time. In the meantime you and the Hammer can head to the office and recreate that wall of crazy we found and make sure the information we gathered on the Griffiths is properly inputted into our database."

Alice gestured for Tilda to come forward. "This is Tilda. She is an associate of Sybil Griffiths. I need her taken to our new safe house."

Val slowly shook her head causing Alice to give her a questioning look.

"That … might not be a good idea."

Alice's eyes narrowed.

"Why?"

#

Rhys staggered several steps backwards, his eyes watering as his left hand reached up to his nose. He blinked through the tears as a trickle of blood slipped through his clenched fingers.

"Oh how I have missed you, Alice."

Alice shook feeling back into her hand as she glared at Rhys. "You nearly destroyed everything that Ben did to gain his freedom for your selfish gains and then you come scurrying back to stand behind him because you nearly caught a bullet."

Margot jovially raised a finger from the couch where she sat with Tessa. "Actually, he almost caught two."

Alice slowly walked over to Rhys where he stood by the marble kitchen island. Rhys did not know whether to raise his fists to protect himself or step back. He opted for standing completely still as she came to a halt mere inches away.

"We will work to bring down your uncle and his crazy daughters. We will make sure that you are protected, but that means you will do what I say. It means none of your insane one-liners, none of your gunslinger hijinks, none of it."

She slowly brought up the hand that she had used to punch Rhys in his nose to tightly clenched his teal silk tie. "You make the one wrong move that that I don't like and it will be a coin flip as to whether I toss your ass to Dao or your uncle. Trust me when I say that it doesn't matter who. You will be gone."

She reached up with her other hand and straightened the tie until the hand wrinkles were smoothed out. Rhys smiled down at her.

"Oh how I have missed you, Alice."

Alice took a deep breath, expelling the air from her lungs as the anger within her gradually dissipated. She turned from Rhys and back to Margot and Tessa.

"I have to go to the office. It seems Agent Dao is trying to piece together everything himself in his usual dogged way so I have to make sure that he doesn't know you two are in the picture. Agent Shawn is outside. If you need to reach us, use one of the burners we provided yesterday, but no other communication with the outside world."

She started to make her way to the exit but turned back to the couch and looked at Tessa. The teenage girl gathered her purse and phone up as she rose to her feet.

Margot also got up, giving Tessa a startled look. "Tessa? Where are you going, dear?"

"With Alice, Mum." She squeezed Margot's hand. "It seems being with her is a safer bet than being anywhere around you two."

She winked before releasing Margot's hand and eased her way past Rhys out of the door. Rhys shook his head as he shot Margot a rueful grin.

"That child is getting smarter and smarter everyday."

#

Ben blew out a long whistle as he took in some of the information Sophie had posted on the wall of Alice's office. "Oliver Griffiths really gathered a lot of information on Rhys and Margot. This looks like over a year's worth of intel, pictures, notes."

He looked at one sheet of paper intently for several seconds. "Hmmm. The G's written on this paper show three uncharacteristic differences. That means three different people wrote on it."

Sitting cross legged on the floor, Sophie looked up from her laptop at him. "You were able to see that?"

"That's how I was able to figure out someone was embezzling from Ethan Hunt. That and a birthday card."

"I didn't even think about handwriting analysis or anything like that."

"No need. Three guesses who it was collecting notes." Ben sat down on the couch and took a sip out of his coffee mug.

"I had just brewed a fresh pot before you got in. Want a cup?"

"Sure."

Sophie watched Ben reached over for a thermos and spare mug. She fiddled with her laptop absentmindedly until he passed the mug to her. "Here you go."

"Thanks." She took a sniff of the contents and noted the unique aroma. "It smells great."

Ben smiled. "I grind my own beans."

Sophie returned the smile and looked at Ben from behind her mug as he slid a stack of folders closer to him on the couch. She set down the coffee and closed her laptop.

"Ben, I think I owe you an apology."

He glanced up from his work, a little surprised at her announcement. "What for?"

"I think I was a little hostile towards you when you came back to the city. Everything that has happened with AVI, I - I blamed you, I blamed Margot Bishop, and I blamed Rhys. I especially blamed you because of how you misled Alice for a year."

She looked down at her right hand and noticed with a start that it was covering her surgical incision. "I put a lot of blame on you without considering the good you have done and it was unfair to you. I hope you accept my apology."

Ben shook his head. "Sophie, you have nothing to apologize for. In fact, I want to apologize to you for what you had to go through the last few months. You were shot while in the middle of another one of Margot and Rhys' petty battles for the Kensington Firm throne. That's something I will always regret."

He tapped his knee with a finger in thought. "Alice told me you were thinking about leaving. I know everything that has happened led you to whatever decision you make. I feel responsible for … you even being in that position. If you leave AVI, it will be something else I have to add to the list."

He shook his head again. "I never wanted to involve any of you in this. I wish I could have you all as far away from this as I could possibly get you."

"But you know I wouldn't let that happen."

Ben and Sophie both looked up at Alice standing at the door. Ben smiled and climbed to his feet. "Hey you."

"Hi." Alice walked over and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Oh how I have missed you."

Ben kissed her lightly, distracted somewhat by the support brace wrapped around her right wrist. He pulled her arms down and scrutinized it closely.

"What happened? Are you alright?"

Alice gave him a sheepish grin. "I stopped over at the house after I landed."

"Oh." Ben smiled. "Rhys."

Alice nodded. "Rhys. It's fine. I guess when I saw Rhys, I got so pissed that I forgot to straighten my wrist. Oh well. It still had the proper effect."

She reached up to kiss him on the cheek before looking down at Sophie. "Any problems, Soph?" She indicated the intel board.

Sophie rose from the floor with the grace of a ballerina. "All done. I'll make sure everything is deposited onto our servers."

She made her way to the door, pausing to look up at Ben. "I'm glad we were able to hash everything out."

Ben placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Me as well."

Alice watched as Sophie exited the office. "What was that about?"

Ben smiled. "Just putting the past behind us." He looked down at her. "I think she and I have made peace."

"I'm glad." Alice squeezed his hand with her uninjured one. "And speaking of the past, there's someone you should meet."

#

Troy wiped his mouth with a cloth napkin and placed it on the plate in front of him. "Great sandwich."

Reggie Lennox rotated his barstool over and grimaced as he looked at that plate as well as the four other empty plates beside it. "Where does it all go?"

The two sat at a bar on the rooftop of the hotel across from AVI where they have been staying. As the third member of the group outside of AVI and a honored resident of esteemed standing, Princess Zara did not object to Ben suggesting they stayed close to her but clearly was not happy with the arrangement.

Reggie sighed and returned to his cognac sitting in front of him. He glanced at his watch and reached for his drink when movement in the lobby caught his eye. He tapped Troy on the shoulder.

"She's here. Why don't you check and make sure our section is ready."

Reggie downed his drink and walked over to the entrance as Princess Zara stepped inside. She wore a neutral expression on her face as she cautiously approached. Reggie ignored it as he executed a formal bow. "Your Highness. I appreciate you accepting my invitation."

The princess gave the bar a hurried glance. "Stop that," she said, gesturing with her hands to stop. "Part of the arrangement I made with my brother is that I maintain some sort of anonymity here in the United States."

Reggie quickly straightened and gestured to a section of the bar where Troy awaited in the middle of a group of leather chairs. "I hope I wasn't too forward in calling you up for a drink, Your Highness. With everything at a standstill and this new guy still out there, Ben wanted me to keep an eye on you."

They walked over to the section. Troy started to bow at the waist but Reggie hastily waved as he stood behind the princess who took a seat in one of the comfortable chairs. Troy settled for an awkward two-fingered salute instead.

Reggie rolled his eyes as he made his way to sit down across from the princess. The glare she gave him could have melted ice as she regarded him in silence. "Uh, is something wrong, Your Highness?"

The princess placed her hands in her lap. "Let me make one thing clear, Mr. Lennox. I have forgiven Ben for the scheme he and his group plotted against me because he was upfront with me. Honest. Sincere. He actually tried to help me. I have no ill will towards him."

She pointed a manicured finger towards him "But I still remember that you played a vital role in the attempt to defraud the royal family of our fortune. That forgiveness does not transfer over to you, I'm afraid."

She stared at him for several seconds longer until a waiter came over to take their drink order. Reggie raised his eyebrows slightly at her request. "Bourbon. You obviously have been hanging around Alice Vaughan."

"Who I hang around with is none of your concern." Zara pulled her cellphone out of her purse and reviewed its contents. "Ah. Alice has returned from wherever she went."

She set the phone down in her lap as she regarded the two men with a thin smile. "I have a plan that will hopefully get Ben out from under and protect all of us. But for this to go off without what you say in this country, a hitch, I require associates."

Reggie looked at the princess with incredulous eyes. "A crew? What do you plan to do? Run a con of your own?"

Zara did not immediately answer as the waiter returned with their drinks. Reggie shook his head as Troy reached for his strawberry smoothie in a frosted mug while he sipped on another cognac. The princess sipped her bourbon once and set it aside.

"What I decided to do is not a con. As I said, what I have planned is twofold for all to benefit."

"And that is part of the definition for a con." Reggie set his drink down on the table beside him. "Princess, do you know the amount of work, the amount of time it takes to plan for any kind of delicate operation? Not to mention a substantial line of credit."

Zara gestured nonchalantly as she sipped her drink, causing Reggie to exchange uncertain looks with Troy.

#

The princess stood in her dining room behind the chair at the head of the table. Three large, metallic suitcases sat on top of the smooth marble surface, each protected by a tall bodyguard who stood with one hand resting on a suitcase.

Reggie did not approach the table as he could see the pistol each bodyguard was holding with his other hand. Instead he looked over to the princess. "And what do we have here?"

The princess turned to her bodyguards and spoke in her native Kuroqi. As one, they each opened their suitcases and spun them for Reggie and Troy to view their contents.

"Thirty million U.S. dollars," she announced as she moved to stand between Reggie and Troy. "Ten million per suitcase. Unmarked, untraceable bills."

Reggie turned and tried to speak but words completely failed him. Troy lightly tapped Zara on the shoulder. "You're planning a payoff."

Zara briefly considered the statement before smiling.

"I'm planning a bid for freedom."

#

Brother and sister glared at each other while standing at opposite ends of the kitchen island in silence. Margot sipped on a white wine from a long stemmed glass while Rhys twisted the top off of a beer bottle.

He took a healthy pull and shook his head. "So you mean to tell me that in all the years you have worked within the firm's infrastructure, you never once came across any kind of clue that would lead you to the ledger?"

Margot rolled her eyes. "For the fiftieth time, no, Rhys! I have no idea where it is, what it looks like, or even what specifically is in it! Don't you think I would have use its secrets a long time ago if I did?"

"Oh yes, I do." Rhys set his beer down. "I most certainly would have."

Margot narrowed her eyes. "And nothing has changed with you. How typical. You have certainly been playing the role of Benedict Arnold rather ruthlessly as of late. You snatched the firm out from under me and absorbed resources and crews throughout the city right under the nose of Agent Diaz, who I heard spoke up for you to have you included in Ben's original informant deal with the FBI."

She circled the island to stand in front of her brother. "But the most disappointing thing that you did that was that you betrayed a man who was like a brother to you. You betrayed Ben."

Rhys started to say something but instead took another sip of his beer. He pulled it down from his lips and looked down at it as he slid in across the island's marble surface. "You're absolutely right, dear sister. I have done unspeakable, unimaginable things to you, Ben, and Tessa. I made Ben go against the FBI to help you and your daughter -"

"Your niece!" Margot slapped the counter top with the palm of her hand with such ferocity that Rhys jumped. "Damnit, as much as the little helion has wrecked our lives, Rhys, Tessa is your niece! Your own flesh and blood!

"You're right! For God's sakes, you are absolutely right." Rhys turned around and examined his beer bottle one last time before pouring the contents into the sink. "My actions might have caused irreparable harm and I … I have much to answer for."

Margot was taken back, startled by Rhys' atonement. She hesitated in her motion, unsure of whether to use the moment to simply walk back to her bedroom or stay and offer words of forgiveness. Deciding that mercy was not easily dispensed, she settled on the one thing that members of her family were known for.

Tough love.

"Yes you do have much to answer for." Margot reached for her glass as she regarded her brother with what she hoped was a stony glare. "But we didn't put you in this position. You alone orchestrated this plot of absolute betrayal. It falls on you to extract yourself from this pickle of a mess you engineered."

Margot raised her glass in a mock salute before retreating down the hall to her room, leaving Rhys alone in the kitchen. He drummed his fingers thoughtfully along the countertop for a minute as he contemplated his next move.

Reaching a decision, he extracted the burner provided by Danny from a jacket pocket. Grimacing at the sight of the bland flip phone in his hand, he dialed a number into the device and typed a quick text message before sending it along to its recipient.

Seconds ticked by as he anxiously waited for a response. He thought of resending the message as a show of a sense of urgency when the phone buzzed in his hand. He hastily opened the text and scanned the words carefully.

"Right," he said, snapping the device shut. "Time to finish this."

#